MLS: Zlatan Ibrahimovic Moving On To LA Galaxy

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 26: Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Manchester United looks on during the Premier League match between Manchester United and Burnley at Old Trafford on December 26, 2017 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)

You cannot spell the word Zlatan in Zlatan Ibrahimovic without LA. The longtime Paris Saint-Germain scoring machine whose stint at Manchester United has been hampered by injury could be finally making a move to Los Angeles and joining Sigi Schmid’s LA Galaxy in a big-money move that will get the long-suffering Galaxy football fans in a frenzy.

Zlatan off to the @MLS says ESPN. Surprised it’s taken this long. He will be in a Hollywood action movie within 3 years.

He is a man over Over 9000 memes, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, the king of Swedish football, now prepared to potentially close out his career in the blue and gold sash of one of the most storied clubs in Major League Soccer. Despite his injury issues that comes with years of service to the game, Zlatan’s leadership and experience will come in handy for the younger players he is expected to work with. ESPN FC writes…

Sources have also said that Ibrahimovic, if he does indeed make the move, will be signed with the help of targeted allocation money, which means he will not take up a designated player spot. It’s unclear at this point whether sponsors or other sources are kicking in money to augment Ibrahimovic’s salary. The two sides have been down this road before, but the devastating knee injury Ibrahimovic suffered in April led to a breakdown in the prospect of a deal at the time.

Ibrahimovic, 36, has since returned, making seven league and cup appearances this season. The former Sweden international suffered a setback at the end of December but is reportedly due to resume training next week. Manchester United’s recent signing of Alexis Sanchez would appear to further limit the amount of playing time Ibrahimovic will be able to find with the team.

With LAFC gaining the upper hand and leverage with its signings, the Galaxy are losing control as the main team in the city and have been forced to look to big names from the past to bolster its hopes. The club recently signed another longtime veteran to the league in Chris Pontius, a midfielder whose knowledge of the game and the competition stateside will be key to the Galaxy’s fortunes in 2018.

Jo-Ryan Salazar is a writer for The Stoppage Time, a soccer blog powered by Azteca Soccer. A supporter of the Los Angeles Galaxy since 1996 and a committed supporter since 2002, Jo-Ryan also follows Chelsea FC, Melbourne Victory, FC Tokyo and Paris Saint-Germain. Apart from soccer, Jo-Ryan is an administrative assistant for a local nonprofit in Long Beach, California and also does photography, photo-editing and fictional writing.